Rim Social Security Visits End

Rim Country residents needing to visit with a Social Security representative can no longer make that contact at the Payson Town Hall.

The Social Security Administration will no longer visit Payson Town Hall to handle area residents’ business. The service is being discontinued due to Congress significantly cutting the administrative budget, said Rudy Macias, district manager of the SS office in Mesa.

Macias said the Congressional cuts to the Social Security Administration budget have resulted in more than 300 remote service sites being closed. He said there are 10 sites being closed in Arizona.

“These are generally in rural areas where we have to rent space, such as in community centers,” he said. The cuts also eliminated travel money, he said.

“A majority of the business an individual would have with us can be handled over the phone — about 80 percent,” Macias said.

The toll-free number to the Mesa office is 1-800-772-1213.

He added the Social Security Web site is also very user friendly and can provide answers to the most frequently asked questions.

The site address is www.socialsecurity.gov. Those who don’t have access to a computer with Internet service can make use of the equipment at both the Payson Public Library and the Pine Public Library.

In the event business cannot be successfully handled over the phone or through the Web site, the nearest Social Security office is located at 702 W. Jerome Mesa, Arizona 85210.